Center Director Justin Martin, who is also the campus’ student involvement coordinator, said he thinks the center is also one of the few in the nation to exist on a two-year campus.

The center offers LGBTQ resources such as books and movies, as well as programming such as its Drag Night. Its Resource Fair in April will bring more than a dozen LGBTQ organizations from Minnesota and Wisconsin to campus so students know what kinds of services are available to them.

Community colleges tend to be commuter schools where students don’t spend a lot of time. But Martin said Century has a growing campus life, and many students spend “quite a lot of time” there.

“They need a safe space” where they can feel comfortable and free from potential harassment, he said. “There aren’t too many in the northeast metro.”

Century’s Queer and Straight student group pushed for the center, Martin said, which was established in some student organization office space. So far the center has received about 150 visitors a week, he said.

About the blogger

Alex Friedrich reports on higher education issues for MPR News. Among the stories he has covered: the fall of the Berlin Wall, aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis, 2003 Moscow suicide bombing and 2004 presidential elections in the Republic of Georgia. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and a master’s in European political economy from the London School of Economics.